


the special kind

by littlemsmessy



Category: Nancy Drew - Carolyn Keene
Genre: F/M, Fluff and Angst, Married Couple, Parents & Children, Yuletide 2012
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-01-16
Updated: 2013-01-16
Packaged: 2017-11-25 16:44:23
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,248
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/640993
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/littlemsmessy/pseuds/littlemsmessy
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Ned needs to console his daughter after she experiences her first broken heart.</p>
            </blockquote>





	the special kind

**Author's Note:**

> Written for: Nancy Drew Yuletide 2012  
> Series: ND Files  
> Rating: PG-13  
> Summary/Prompt: A fluff piece on Ned and his daughter. Maybe a tea party or her first broken heart.  
> Spoilers: None  
> Warning(s): Some adult language and references; nothing graphic  
> Disclaimer: None of these characters are mine - my name is littlemsmessy, not Carolyn Keene. If these were my characters, I'd be rich right now, and each of you would get a pony.  
> Notes: This is a continuation of one of my other Yuletide 2012 stories, the miracle of you.

  
  


Noelle opened the car door and after tossing her book bag onto the rear seat of her father’s SUV, slid into the front passenger’s seat. She clicked on her seat belt and smiled over at her father.

“Hey, Noelle!” He smiled back, ruffling her hair before carefully making his way into traffic. “How was school?”

“School was…school,” Noelle sighed dramatically. “I mean, when would I ever use geometry theorems in the real world, Dad? I’m not planning on being a geometrist.”

He laughed. “I think you mean mathematician, honey - and you never know.”

“No, I do know. Anyway, everything else was fine – just glad it’s Friday!” Noelle pulled down the sun visor and checked her lip gloss in the mirror. She’d reapplied it before last period in the hopes that Jason Williams would notice.

“Hey, before we go to the movies, we’ll need to stop off at the house first. I have to run Nattie’s sleeping bag, along with her overnight stuff and the birthday present, over to her friend Sara’s house for that sleepover she has tonight. One of the other moms picked all of the girls up from school and took them to the party, but I promised to drop her stuff off.”

“Just as long as we’re not late for the movie, Dad,” Noelle reminded him, suddenly anxious.

The latest installment in the hot teen vampire romance saga had been released today, and somehow her father had managed to order them tickets online. Some of the other girls in her class would’ve probably thought she was uncool for hanging out with her dad at the movies on Friday night, but Noelle liked the idea of spending alone time with him.

Ever since they’d adopted her little sister Natalie as a baby eight years ago– Nattie for short, because Noelle hadn’t been able to say the word Natalie as a little girl –both of her parents had been careful to set up special separate ‘Mom and me’ or ‘Dad and me’ nights with each of their children. It was corny, but was also kind of nice to get their undivided attention. She thought it was probably due to the fact that both of her parents were only children and were totally used to being the focus of their families.

“We’ll be fine, Noelle,” her father now promised her. “Nattie’s friend’s house is only a few blocks away from ours, and the theater’s only ten minutes away from there.

“By the way, I talked to Mom right before I left the office to come pick you up.”

Noelle’s mom was in Atlanta for one of her cases, which meant that Dad had been taking care of her and Nattie solo for the last few days. Her friends thought it was way cool that Noelle’s mom was a private investigator, and Noelle agreed with them. When her mom had come to school for career day last month, her classmates had been totally interested when she’d talked about her job – much more so than when Marcy Jackson’s mom had yakked on and on about being a boring old dentist.

“Did she say she’d still be home in a few days? She promised to take me dress shopping for the winter dance,” she reminded her father.

“Yep – she hasn’t forgotten. She said she may even be home by Sunday night, if all goes well tomorrow.”

“Cool - then we’ll be able to look for dresses next week!” Noelle squealed.

“Your mom already has that on her schedule,” he confirmed.

“Even if Mom comes home, are we still going to Grandma Edith’s and Grandpa James’s for dinner on Sunday?”

“That’s the plan,” he confirmed. “They want to see you and your sister before they go on their anniversary cruise next weekend.”

“Yeah!” Noelle cheered. “Grandma Edith promised she’d let me help her make the twice-baked potatoes and the broccoli casserole.”

“Between your cooking lessons with my mom and the ones from Grandma Hannah, you’ll be a regular gourmet chef in no time at all,” her dad teased.

She made a face. “Well, no matter how many times they teach me stuff, I’ll never be as good of a cook as they are.”

“You will,” he reassured her. “After all, your mom used to say the exact same thing right after she and I got married, and look at what a great job she does now.”

“True,” Noelle conceded. “Her chicken scampi was awesome last week.” She licked her lips, remembering.

“Mmm,” he agreed, patting his stomach as he pulled into their driveway. “Let’s ask her to make it again for us when she gets back. I’m pretty sure we can convince her.”

\--

“That movie was _so good,_ Dad!” Noelle bubbled as they straggled out of the packed theater. “OMG, it was even better than the book, and everyone online said that there was no possible way it could be!”

She continued to chatter on excitedly about how amazing the movie was, her dad nodding at the appropriate points. Noelle had a feeling that he didn’t love it nearly as much as she had, but the fact that he even took her when he had no interest made her incredibly happy.

Some of her friends’ dads hardly spent any time with them at all, even the ones that weren’t divorced; when they did, their dads made them do lame stuff like watching football or going fishing. Her father liked that kind of stuff, too, but when he made plans with her or Nattie, he made sure to pick the places and things that she and her sister liked.

“Still feel like Dino’s tonight?” her dad asked when they got back to his SUV.

“Yes! I’ve been dreaming about shrimp Alfredo on top of a whole heaping mound of fettuccini noodles – without the peas, of course.”

“Of course,” her father echoed solemnly. “How about splitting an appetizer? Could you go for some calamari?”

She knew he was teasing her, but the thought of eating calamari was beyond nasty to her. “Dad, ew! No squid – that’s gross!”

“Okay, okay,” he sighed as if he were upset. “What about some escargot?”  
  


“What’s that?” Noelle asked, wrinkling up her nose. She pushed back her long, dark hair and rummaged around in the tiny designer purse that her parents had finally, finally been persuaded to buy her for her birthday this past July.

“A French dish with butter and garlic and herbs – on top of snails.”

“Snails? Dad, stop!” she shrieked, looking up from her purse to give him a look of disgust. “Who would eat snails?”

“French people,” he informed her.

“Well, since Dino’s is an Italian restaurant, they wouldn’t have those cargo things.” She rooted through her bag and made a noise of triumph when she finally found a ponytail holder, twisting her hair up and securing it with the elastic. She flipped down the visor to check her work and was pleased to see that it looked perfect.

Noelle was proud that she looked so much like her dad, but sometimes she wished that she had her mom’s red-blonde hair and blue eyes. It was weird – everyone always talked about how much Nattie resembled their mom, when she was the adopted one. And was half-Central American.

“ _Ess-car-go_ ” her father now corrected her, slowly breaking the word down into individual syllables.

“Either way,” Noelle shrugged, “I’m not eating them.”

“Then how about some bruschetta and some toasted ravioli instead?”

“ _Yesssss_ ,” she swooned. “Much better.”

\--

Noelle looked down at her plate and was surprised to see that she’d finished nearly three-quarters of her meal. Every time they came to Dino’s, she swore that she was only going to eat half of her dinner, but then she could never seem to stop herself. Aunt Bess was always telling her how lucky she was to have inherited her mom’s metabolism, which let her eat anything she wanted without worrying about her weight.

Her mom just laughs and says that she has to work out to keep her figure and that it’s a requirement for her job. Then her dad says that her mom looks as good as she does when they met in high school and her mom tells him he does, too.

Then they get all mushy and Noelle and Nattie make noises like they’re pretending to throw up, but secretly they both like it. Noelle was also pretty sure that her Mom and Dad still did _IT_ , the way they were always holding hands and kissing and stuff, but she hated to even _think_ about them like that. It was entirely too gross to imagine.

“So, do you think you’ll still have room for dessert at Fraley’s?” her dad asked.

She was about to reply when her cell phone buzzed in her jeans pocket. Her dad looked up warningly – he and her mom never let her check her phone while at the dinner table - and she reluctantly took her hand off of her pocket. Her phone then buzzed twice more and she gave her dad a pleading look.

“You can check it but then the phone needs to go back into your pocket,” he told her.

Noelle pulled her phone out of her purse and saw three texts in a row from her friend Carrie. Truthfully, she and Carrie would fight and make up a lot, but this week, they were friends again – Noelle had even almost forgiven Carrie for calling her dad a straight-up hottie the other day.

She quickly sent a reply; as she was responding, she got yet another text from Carrie. As she read it, she started to feel sick, and was horrified to feel her eyes filling with tears as she sat in the middle of the restaurant.

“Honey? What is it?” her dad asked with concern.

“Nothing,” she lied, looking up.

“Obviously something is, because you’re crying, Noelle.”

She sniffled. “It’s fine.”

He tried a few more times to get her to open up, but Noelle couldn’t – it would be way too weird to talk to her dad about something like this.

They were in the car, heading towards Fraley’s, when Noelle spoke again. “Dad, if it’s okay with you, I don’t think I want dessert anymore. Can we just go home?”

“If that’s what you want, honey,” he told her, sounding surprised. He turned the car around and headed back towards the house, reaching over to pat her hand.

Once they got back home, Noelle started up the stairs, stopping when her dad called her name from the foot of the steps.

“Honey, I know you said that nothing was wrong, but I know that it is. Please talk to me?”

She turned around, pasting a fake smile onto her face. “Dad, there’s nothing to talk about.”  
  


“Come on, honey – I know better you than that. Your mom’s not the only one who can pick up on clues.”

At that, she gave him a genuine smile. “I know.”

“Then come here and talk to me.” He held his arms open to her.

She trudged down the stairs and into his arms, snuggling against him. “When’s Mom coming home?” she asked, her voice muffled against his sweater.

“Not until Sunday night at the earliest, honey - just like I told you earlier.”

“Oh,” she said, trying not to let her disappointment show.

Her father pulled away so he could look at her face. “I wasn’t ever a teenage girl, but I _was_ a teenage guy... Maybe I could help with whatever’s bothering you?”

Noelle was about to tell him no, but there was no way that she could hold this in until her mom came back on Sunday - and it wouldn’t be the same if they had the conversation over the phone. Still, it would be hard to talk about this kind of stuff with her dad…

“Why don’t we sit on the couch and talk about it?” Her dad led her to the couch and they sat facing each other.

“So, tell me about what was in those texts that you got at dinner.”

Noelle looked down at her fingers, picking absently at the chipped sparkly green nail polish on the tips. “They were from Carrie. She heard some news from Allyson, who found out from Hayden…”

When she remained silent, he prompted her. “What was the news?”

“Mom doesn’t need to take me dress shopping for the winter dance, because I’m not going!” she burst out.

Her father raised his eyebrows. “Does this have to do with the news that Carrie gave to you?”

“Yes,” she admitted miserably. “Because Carrie found out that Jason Williams asked Jennifer Lester to the dance!”

“Oh,” he replied softly. “And you thought he was going to ask you?”

“Kinda,” she shrugged. “I mean, he’s been finding excuses to talk to me and he always says nice little things to me…I thought it meant he liked me.” Her sentence ended in a sob that she couldn’t hold back.

Her father pulled her into his arms and began rubbing her back soothingly. It felt so good to be hugged by him that she couldn’t stop crying against his strong shoulder.

“Honey, are you sure that what Carrie told you was true? Because sometimes people like to spread rumors and start trouble…”

She shook her head vigorously and took her phone out of her pocket, quickly showing him the texts from her friend. They included pictures of the updated Facebook statuses of both Jason and Jenn, proclaiming that they’d be going to the dance together.

“I’m sorry, sweetheart. I’m really sorry.” His eyes, the same color brown as hers, reflected sympathy.

“Why would he do that to me?” she asked sadly. “Why would he act like he liked me when he obviously wanted to ask Jenn to the dance?”

“Because some guys are…not nice,” he sighed. “They just like playing around to get as many girls as possible to like them.

“Why?” She sniffled, wishing she had a tissue.

“Because it makes them feel good about themselves.”

“Were you like that, Daddy?” Lately, she’s been telling her parents that she’s now way too old to call them Mommy and Daddy, but right now she doesn’t care.

He shakes his head. “No. I’ll admit that it was nice when girls had crushes on me, but I didn’t lead them on if I didn’t like them.”

“What about when you met Mommy?”

“Well,” he smiled, tugging on the end of her ponytail, “I fell in love with Mommy the minute I met her. I saw her beautiful face and how smart and funny and kind and wonderful she was, and I loved her. It happened just-like-that.” He snapped his fingers.

“And did you let her know?”

“I did,” her father acknowledged. “Truth be told, _everyone_ knew that I was in love with her – there was no hiding it. And I didn’t want to, either. I wanted the world to know how much I cared about her, how happy she made me.

“When I did nice stuff for her, it was because I wanted her to feel special and loved. I made sure to take note of the things she liked and hated so I could order her pizza the way she wanted it, or I could surprise her with her favorite flowers…”

He gave her a gentle smile. “And that’s what you deserve, too – a guy who won’t be too cool to let you know how he feels about you, someone who treats you kindly because he genuinely cares about you and wants you to be happy.”

Noelle sniffled again, glad when her dad silently handed her a tissue. “I thought Jason was like that – he seemed cool and he used to joke around with me. And he’s always saying nice things to me. Last week, he even brought me a bag of salt and vinegar potato chips ‘cause I told him that I liked them. That’s why I thought he was into me. ”

“I’m so sorry, sweetheart. I hate that he treated you like this. But you know what? You still shouldn’t let it keep you from going to the dance and having a good time with your friends.

“And who knows? Maybe before the next dance, some other guy who really does like you will ask you to go with him and you’ll say, ‘ _Jason who’_?”

She giggled, already starting to feel a little better.

“And this other guy will be nice to you and tell you how beautiful you are, and he’ll mean it. He’ll work hard to make you feel as special as you really are. That’s what you deserve, sweetheart – someone who appreciates what a special, wonderful kind of girl you are.”

“Thank you, Daddy,” she whispered. “But it still hurts – especially since everyone else knows that I thought Jason was going to ask me. I feel so stupid!” The thought of having to face everyone at school on Monday actually made her stomach clench.

“No,” he told her firmly. “The only one who should feel stupid here is Jason – he’s the one who behaved badly. Just ignore what anyone else says.

“Come here, Noelle.” He held open his arms and she gratefully went into them again. “I love you so much, sweetheart, and I wish I could take away all of the hurt. But I can tell you that it’ll soon start to fade away – it just takes time. ”

“How much time?” she asked him, snuggling deeper. Even though she was a big girl now, practically a teenager, she still liked it when her dad hugged her.

“Well, until you remember that there are tons of other boys out there and you start to like one of them instead of dumb old Jason. Although, if it were up to your old Dad, you wouldn’t ever like any boys ever, and you’d always stay my little girl.”

Noelle giggled. “Daddy!”

“No, huh?” She shook her head against him. “Well, it was worth a shot.”

“So, is it settled? Are you still going to the dance? Because Mommy _really_ had to convince me that you needed a new dress – I kept saying no, that you already have hundreds of dresses, but she insisted…” He gave a mock sigh.

She giggled again. “Not _hundreds_ , Daddy.” Noelle reluctantly pulled away from her dad’s arms.

“Oh, really? Then what are all of those things in your closet upstairs – figments of my imagination?  
  


“Yep,” she told him, her ponytail bobbing up and down as she nodded. “You already said yes, so I’m getting a new dress – no takebacks! And I’m getting a manicure!” she held up her hand and wiggled her fingers.

“A manicure?” he asked playfully. “I don’t remember saying yes to that!”

“I’m pretty sure Mommy will let me get one,” she informed him confidently.

“You think so?”

“I know so.”

Her dad smiled at her. “You know what? I could still go for dessert at Fraley’s – and I definitely think you deserve it after what happened tonight.”

Noelle pretended to consider it. “Well, maybe I could get down a piece of strawberry shortcake.”

“And if you don’t finish it, then I could help out.”

“Just like you always do?”

“Yes, and this time I won’t have to eat the leftovers from you _and_ Mommy _and_ Nattie, so you won’t need to roll me out of there.

“Now, why don’t you go upstairs and wash your face?” He gently swiped the pad of his thumb under her eyes, which came away with a smear of the mascara that she was now allowed to wear because she was in seventh grade.

“Meanwhile, I’ll check in with your little sister to make sure she’s okay at her sleepover. Then we’ll go out, okay?”

Nodding, Noelle got to her feet and started for the stairs before coming back to the couch, where her father now stood.

“Thanks, Daddy - I love you. “

He returned her hug, planting a kiss on the crown of her head. . “Love you, too, baby. And I hope you know that you can always come to me or Mommy with anything – no matter what. You and your sister both.”

She pulled back and gave him a lopsided smile. “I know, Daddy.”

“I mean it,” her father insisted. “Even if it’s about something embarrassing, like boys or sex or drugs or alcohol…”

She made a face, but he continued. “I don’t ever want you to think that you can’t talk to me, just because I’m your dad. I love you so much and will always be here for you, baby.”

“I know,” she repeated, meaning it.

“Good.” He smiled at her. “So hurry up and wash your face, already! My stomach is growling at the idea of a layer of chocolate mousse in between two thick, fudgy brownies topped with whipped cream…”

“Yummmm….” Noelle giggled. “Can I have a taste of yours in addition to getting my own piece of strawberry shortcake?”

Her father pretended to think it over. “We’ll see. I may not want to share…”

“Please?” she begged, pushing down her lower lip in an exaggerated pout.

“Well, since my favorite older daughter is asking, then…okay.”

“So if Nattie asked, you wouldn’t share with her?”

He chuckled. “She’s my favorite _younger_ daughter, so I still would.”

\--

Ned watched his daughter rush up the stairs, his fists clenched at his sides. He knew that it was wrong, but he wanted to find that punk-ass kid Jason and rip him from limb to limb. He knew that type of player all too well from his days at Mapleton High and then at Emerson: outrageously flirting with all of the girls, stringing them along just to boost his own damn ego.

It had nearly broken his heart when Noelle had started crying. The thought of his sweet, loving, generous, funny, incredible little girl being heartbroken over a kid who clearly wasn’t worth the tears was too much.

Ned had almost gone along with Noelle’s request to wait until her mother returned to talk about what had been troubling her, but he didn’t like the thought of her holding in her emotions. He also didn’t want her to be afraid of coming to him about the hard stuff – it was important for both of his girls to know that their father would be there to listen and support them in good times and in bad

He briefly thought of his father-in-law, who had had to be both mother and father to Nancy. Ned had no idea how he’d managed to weather these kinds of storms without anyone to share the parenting duties, especially given how close he and Nancy were. Carson had relied on Hannah a lot, but it wasn’t quite the same thing.

He heard Noelle’s feet pounding down the stairs, signaling her return, and he pasted a smile on his face to greet her.

“Better?” she asked, twirling around to he could take in her freshly-combed hair and her reapplied mascara and lip gloss.

“Beautiful, as always. My little Noelle’s not so little anymore,” he sighed in mock sorrow. “She’s now a beautiful young woman.”

She made a face, but couldn’t hold it for very long before breaking into a delighted giggle.

“Dad….”

Everyone always commented on how much his older daughter resembled him physically, but there were times – like right now - when her facial expressions exactly mirrored Nancy’s, and he could see his wife so clearly in Noelle.

“It’s true,” Ned insisted. “Ask anyone.”

“You have to say that – you’re my dad.”

“I have to say it because it’s true. Now, let’s stop talking because I really need some brownie, ASAP.”

\--

By the time they got home, Noelle seemed almost back to normal. She had eagerly dug into her strawberry shortcake at Fraley’s, eating almost the entire thing, and had even taken several forkfuls of his brownie dessert. Upon their return, Ned had half-expected her to turn down his offer to play a few rounds of her favorite video game, but she had enthusiastically agreed.

Then they both flopped down onto the couch and watched a dumb teen horror movie that was light on the sexual content and violence, much to Ned’s relief. He’d been gratified when Noelle hadn’t pulled away after he’d put an arm around her shoulders and how she’d let him pull her to his side. Given how upset she’d been earlier, he wanted to show her a little more affection and attention than usual; since she didn’t push back, he suspected that she really needed it.

At eleven-thirty, way past her normal weekend bedtime, Ned finally sent Noelle upstairs, but she didn’t put up a fight. Her eyelids had already been at half-mast and she had looked as though she was about to fall asleep on the couch any minute. Just before she left, he reminded her to knock on his bedroom door if she was still sad or wanted to talk; Noelle rewarded him with a sleepy smile, a hug, and a kiss before trudging up the steps.

Ned stayed downstairs another half hour or so before turning in, himself. He paused in front of Noelle’s bedroom door, listening to see if she was still awake or tossing and turning, but she seemed to be sound asleep.

Relieved, he went on to the master bedroom, where he changed into flannel pajama pants and a t-shirt. Ned sat on the edge of the mattress, disappointed that the other side of the bed was empty. Even after all of this time, he hated when he and Nancy had to sleep apart.

On impulse, Ned grabbed his cell phone and dialed his wife’s number, despite the late hour. As he waited for Nancy to pick up, he caught sight of the time on the bedside clock and winced, hoping that he wouldn’t wake her up.

“Why, hello there, Mr. Nickerson.”

She didn’t sound sleepy, which Ned took as a good sign. “Why, hello there, Mrs. Nickerson. Is this a good time to talk?”

“As a matter of fact, it’s perfect, honey. I just took out the stuff I bought at this very exclusive lingerie shop here in Atlanta tonight. I was thinking about my hot, sexy husband, and I just happened to pick up a few items that I wanted to wear when he welcomes me home.”

“Mmm,” Ned sighed. “Now all I can think about is that lingerie. Tell me more about it, my hot, sexy wife.”

Nancy described it in great detail, and it only made Ned miss her more. He wished they could have a bout of phone sex, but he couldn’t be sure that Noelle wouldn’t knock on his door and want to talk some more.

His wife seemed to sense his reluctance, and she switched the topic of conversation to their kids. “Did Nattie have any trouble with packing her stuff for the sleepover, and did she remember the present for Sara?”

“I had it all under control,” Ned assured Nancy. “Nattie hasn’t called once, either – I texted her earlier to make sure she was okay, and she texted back to say that she was having a great time. Oh, and that she wants a puppy like Sara’s.”

“Oh, she does, does she?” Nancy asked with a touch of humor.

“Oh, she does. Sounds like she really doesn’t know that we intend to go to the shelter next month and pick one out for her for Christmas. I’m just not looking forward to the day when she starts to figure stuff out and we’re unable to surprise her anymore – just like someone else I know.”

“Then’ll it be three of us against one.”

“That’s precisely what I’m not looking forward to.”

“So, how was _Howling for Love_?” Nancy wanted to know, and he could hear the smirk in her voice.

“God, Nan,” he groaned. “I seriously don’t know how our daughter thinks that shit is good. Or why she thinks that pasty-faced kid who plays the vampire is attractive – he just stands around looking mopey while delivering lines like, ‘ _I’d die for you – if I weren’t already dead.’”_

__

He was rewarded with a loud laugh from his wife. “Poor Ned. Well, think of it this way – at least you earned some Cool Dad points tonight. Did you take her for dinner at Dino’s afterwards?”

“I did, and she ordered the shrimp Alfredo, without peas, just like her mom.”

“Yum,” Nancy sighed contentedly. “I still can’t believe that the little pizza joint where you used to take me during high school became such a nice restaurant, but I’ll need to make you take me there again soon. And after dinner, did you guys get dessert at Fraley’s like you promised her?”

“We did, but…” Ned hesitated, unsure of how to broach the topic.

“But what? Don’t tell me that the chocolate mousse brownie wasn’t good, because then I’ll know that you’re lying.”

“No, it was great. Something came up at dinner, though.”

“Like what?”

“Well, we had just finished our meals when her phone went off – it was a text from Carrie.”  
  


Nancy groaned loudly. “Ugh, not that girl. She’s twelve going on twenty-five, I swear. And the way I catch her looking at you? I just pray that she moves away by the time she and Noelle turn sixteen, because I have an irrational fear that I’ll come home one day to find her naked in our bed, waiting for you.”

Ned laughed, in spite of himself. “Well, let me just state for the record that the only naked girl I want in our bed is you, Nan. I promise to kick anyone else out.”

“That’s a relief, but it still doesn’t make Carrie any less precocious. I think she gets it from her mother – she also stares at you inappropriately whenever we go to Noelle’s soccer meets.”

“I hadn’t noticed,” Ned lied. “But anyway, getting back to what happened. Noelle got a text from Carrie, who had gotten one from Allyson, who heard from Hayden that…”

“What? What did they hear?”

“That Jason Williams asked Jennifer Lester to the winter dance.”

Nancy exhaled loudly. “ _Shit._ Noelle was praying that he was going to ask her – she’s had the biggest crush on him since sixth grade.”

Ned made a noise of surprise. “And how did I not know this?” he demanded.

“Because you’re Dad, and girls don’t always want their dads to know about their love lives.”

“Oh, really? Then how come I remember a certain strawberry blonde whose dad was her closest confidant?” Ned asked archly.

“He was,” Nancy conceded, “for most things. But when it came to boys, then it was Hannah or Aunt Eloise. Tell me honestly, honey – did you really want me to tell Dad when I was thinking about kissing you…or doing more with you?”  
  


“Point taken.” He shuddered at the idea of his little Noelle kissing anyone – let alone doing anything else with them.

“Damn it, I can’t believe this. That little shit Jason was flirting with her and telling her how much he liked her sweater the other day at school; when they were at her friend Marcy’s birthday party last weekend, he was asking her all kinds of .questions about the dance.”

“Little fucker,” Ned growled. “Don’t tell me this, Nan, when I already want to go to his house and beat the shit out of him for hurting her and leading her on.”

“Sorry, baby - you aren’t allowed. For some reason, parents frown upon other adults beating the shit out of their kids.”

“Well, he deserves it.”

“Agreed. So, what happened when Noelle saw the text?”

He rubbed the back of his neck. “She got quiet and there were tears in her eyes. I asked her several times what was wrong, but she didn’t answer me. When I asked her about going to Fraley’s for dessert and she turned me down, that was when I knew something was up. We came home, then she asked me when you were coming back, when she already knew the answer.

“So, then I reminded her that Mommy’s not the only one who’s a good listener. She hesitated, but I sensed that she was really, really upset.”

Nancy made a sympathetic sound. “Poor girl.”

“I know,” Ned sighed. “So we sat down on the couch and she told me about what the text had said. I asked if she was sure it was the truth, since we both remember what rumors are like when you’re that age. That’s when she showed me the Facebook statuses for Jenn and Jason on her phone – they both mentioned going to the dance together.”

“Great,” his wife groaned. “What happened then?”

“I told Noelle that I was sorry that it had happened to her and that some other great guy would probably be dying to ask her to the next dance– some guy who really wanted to be with her and didn’t care about someone like Jenn.

“Then, I told her that while it was okay to be sad now, she deserved someone far better than someone like Jason. Someone who’d only be nice to her and do nice things for her because he genuinely cared, not because he was interested in amusing himself. Then I talked her into going to the dance anyway and not letting this get in the way of her having a good time with her friends.”

“And she was okay?” Nancy asked anxiously.

“She was. And I reminded her that she should never be afraid or embarrassed to come to you or me about anything, ever, that we’re always here for her and her sister.”

“You,” she sighed, “you are not only the most wonderful husband, but you’re even a better father. I know what it’s like to have an amazing dad, and I’m so glad that my Noelle and Nattie do, too.”

“Oh, stop,” he told her breezily, although the compliment warmed him.

“I mean it,” Nancy told him, sounding more serious. “You handled that situation perfectly, Ned. You are so wonderful and the girls and I don’t deserve you. I sure was smart when I picked you as my baby daddy.”

Ned let out a loud laugh, then quickly stifled it, hoping he didn’t wake their daughter. “Right back at you, my baby mama.”

“I wish I wasn’t so far away – then I could give Noelle a great big hug. And give one to you, too.”

So, does this mean I’ll really get rewarded when you come home?” He injected a teasing note into his voice.

“Like how?” Nancy teased back.

“Oh, I can think of a few ways,” Ned drawled. “Like us sending the kids out of the house for a good two hours and you putting on that lingerie…”

She giggled. “Two hours, huh? That does sound heavenly, but I don’t think we’ll be able to pull it off, honey. I probably won’t be home until late on Sunday, and the girls have school on Monday…”

“Well, since you’re coming back so late, they probably won’t expect you in the office first thing on Monday morning, right? And it’s the funniest thing – I feel like my throat is getting scratchy and like I’m coming down with a fever…”

“So you couldn’t possibly go in to work on Monday,” Nancy declared, finishing his sentence.

“Exactly. I mean, the only thing that would probably cure it would be a whole day in bed – with my wife. While our kids are at school.” Ned felt his groin tighten at the thought of it.

“Whatever would we do?” she asked, sounding entirely too innocent.

“I’m sure we’d figure something out when I got you good and naked…”

“Don’t you mean bad and naked?” Her voice was a throaty, seductive purr.

“Don’t you start something you can’t finish, Nan…”

“Well, you just hold that thought, Ned, and you’ll be able to do with me what you wish in a few days…”

“Mmmm…” he growled. “Are you sure you can’t wrap things up tomorrow and get back here sooner?”

Nancy sighed. “I wish. But if I don’t get to sleep in a few minutes, I won’t be able to get an early start tomorrow, which means I won’t be able to come back on Sunday.”

“Well, we can’t have that – not when we have such important plans for Monday. So I guess I’ll just have to let you go now.”

“Yeah, you do,” she said sorrowfully. “But call me again tomorrow morning after Noelle’s up and let me know how she’s doing, okay? I’ll call her too, but she may not tell me the whole thing.”

“I will,” he vowed. “And be careful tomorrow, baby.”

Nancy made a dismissive sound. “It’s just some research, honey. No big deal.”

“Yeah, I’ve heard that before,” he told her wryly. “Okay, get some sleep now. I love you, baby.”

“I love you, too. And thanks again for taking such good care of our girls.”

“No need to thank me, Nan – the two of them and you are the best part of my life,” Ned told her seriously. “I love spending time with them.”

“So sweet. You are so sweet, Mr. Nickerson.”

“Hurry back home to me, Mrs. Nickerson - I miss you so much.”

“I miss you, too.”

Ned disconnected the call and set his phone onto the nightstand, a smile still on his face as he pushed back the covers and got into bed.


End file.
